topic Re: Re:AMT vPro KVM Access using VNC Software in Intel vPro® Platform

AMT vPro KVM Access using VNC Software

LennartRipke — Mon, 26 Aug 2024 10:35:48 GMT

Dear Forum,
I am looking for a way to access VNC via vpro /AMT. Only goal is to see the screen and to control the computer with keyboard and mouse from remote using a Full Screen access

Currently I am able to access the monitor using MeshCommander, but this seems to be not officially supported anymore and I am looking for a official version.
Also MeshCommander does not allow for a full screen mode without borders (at least I have not found a way)

Current Setup:
== Network Layout:
There are e.g. 6 computers (Windows 10) in a machine which are access from a main HMI computer.
The machine has fixed IP addresses, no Internet access, no domain host, no DHCP.
The HMI should be able to display the VNC screens of the others.

== MEBx Configuration / AMT

ME Version: 16.1.30.2269

ME Password: yes, set a user password

AMT Configuration: Password Policy: Anytime

Redirection Features: SOL: Enabled

Redirection Features: Storage Redirection: Enabled

Redirection Features: KVM Feature Selection: Enabled

User Consent: user Opt-In: KVM

User Consent: Opt-In Configurable from Remote IT: Enabled#

TCP/IP Settings: Fixed IP

Remote Setup and Configuration: Without changes

== MeshCommander v0.9.6
Hostname: 192.168.25.198 (fixed IP, no AD, ip dependent on system)
Auth/Security: Digest / TLS
username: admin

Pass: ******

The above settings do allow KVM access using MeshCommander.
But I am unable to find a VNC software able to access the system. There seems to be a certificate that needs to be enabled/created/ installed which is done automatically be MeshCommander but not in the VNC software. I was testing UltraVNC, TightVNC, TigerVNC, RealVNC but have not found certificate options.

Sidenote: If you are a freelancer and able to support our vPro setup in Germany, close to Munich area we can agree on 1 to 2 days support on site

Thank you very much for hints and suggestions.
Lennart

Re:AMT vPro KVM Access using VNC Software

Suneesh — Tue, 27 Aug 2024 00:14:45 GMT

Hello Lennart,

Greetings of the day.

Since the issue is related to Mesh Commander, please be aware that it is a third-party, open-source tool. For further assistance, we recommend reaching out directly to the Mesh Commander team.

Thank you for your understanding.

Best regards,

Suneesh

Re: Re:AMT vPro KVM Access using VNC Software

LennartRipke — Tue, 27 Aug 2024 05:37:44 GMT

Hi Suneesh,

Thank you so much for your response! I really appreciate the insights you provided.

I apologize if my initial question wasn't clear. My primary inquiry is actually about accessing vPro/AMT using VNC tools like UltraVNC, TightVNC, TigerVNC, or RealVNC, rather than through MeshCommander.

The Intel reference guides I've come across (like this one: https://www.intel.de/content/www/de/de/download/16366/) seem to be a bit outdated, dating back to 2012. They don't seem to account for more recent developments in security certificates. Additionally, RealVNC, which is a major player in this space, appears to only support connections up to vPro ME Version 12, while we're currently on ME Version 16.1.

I mentioned MeshCommander because it does show that the connection works and I can establish a KVM connection. However, the GitHub repo states "Intel has discontinued support for this tool. Please contact Intel support for alternatives". Now I'm looking for alternative ways to achieve similar functionality with VNC tools.

I'd love to hear your thoughts or experiences on this, especially if you've managed to get VNC tools working with the more recent versions of vPro/AMT.

Thanks again for your help!

Re:AMT vPro KVM Access using VNC Software

Suneesh — Wed, 28 Aug 2024 00:36:56 GMT

Hello Lennart,

Greetings of the day.

You can use Intel® Endpoint Management Assistant (Intel® EMA), an Intel-built software that enables you to remotely and securely manage Intel® Active Management Technology (Intel® AMT). You can download Intel® EMA using the link provided below.

Link :- https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/download/19449/intel-endpoint-management-assistant-intel-ema.html

The document link given below provides you with the procedure to install and configure the Intel® Endpoint Management Assistant (Intel® EMA) server in a full production environment, as well as how to maintain and manage the Intel® EMA server after installation.

Link :- https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000055629/software/manageability-products.html

You can also refer to this video for additional guidance.

Link :- https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000056028/software/manageability-products.html

Regards,

Suneesh

Re:AMT vPro KVM Access using VNC Software

Suneesh — Tue, 03 Sep 2024 23:17:35 GMT

Hello Lennart,

Thank you for contacting Intel.

This is the first follow-up regarding the issue you reported to us.

We wanted to inquire whether you had the opportunity to review the information we shared.

Feel free to reply to this email, and we'll be more than happy to assist you further.

Regards,

Suneesh

Re: Re:AMT vPro KVM Access using VNC Software

LennartRipke — Wed, 04 Sep 2024 05:40:58 GMT

Hello Suneesh,

The EMA did not help in my scenario as it is working on a different scale and KVM access to the systems is not easy to achive.
Also I was not able to set it up on a windows desktop system. As far as I found I would need a windows server OS which I do not have.

Also the requirements are not easy to fulfill on a windows panel PC running in an isolated industrial manufacturing machine.

Requirements for EMA:

at least 2 Intel® Xeon® Processors, 16 threads, 24GB RAM, 1TB Mirrored. (for 20K Connections)
install Microsoft SQL Server

These 2 requirements (among others) are not possible on the target system.

Currently I'm looking into activating TLS1.2 on the endpoints and for the next week I found a developer for support to get the KVM running. We are trying to achive a connection similar to the one by MeshCommander which is currently allowing access with very little impact to the system running on.

I was told the KVM feature of AMT/vPro is a feature targeted to drop in on of the next version for security reasons. Do you know if this is correct?

Thank you very much,

Lennart

Re: AMT vPro KVM Access using VNC Software

Jimmy_Wai_Intel — Wed, 04 Sep 2024 13:24:23 GMT

Hi Lennart,

Open AMT Cloud Toolkit is new an open-sourced alternative you can explore to manage your Intel AMT devices. You can check it out at the link below. Hope this helps.

https://open-amt-cloud-toolkit.github.io/docs/2.25/

Regards,

Jimmy Wai

Technical Sales Specialist, Client Computing
Intel